THANK YOU FOR Chris Rice’s "What I Learned When I Spoke Up About Gay Rights." I applaud his support of gay civil rights and continuing dialogue between our divided communities.
He and I will disagree on much. I believe God created me to be lesbian. I also believe the diversity of our sexual orientations is one of God’s many gifts. However, what concerns me most is the spiritual well-being of my gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community. Many of us have suffered deep spiritual violence at the hands of our faith communities. Our heterosexual friends and supporters in welcoming congregations are under attack from their denominational hierarchies. Fear and ignorance continue to divide us.
If your faith community is struggling with this issue, please include us in your conversations. Draw on your local gay community. Meet our families. Attend our worship services. Mel White’s autobiography, Stranger at the Gate: To Be Gay and Christian in America, would be a great study group choice. Gay and lesbian Christians, like Sojourners readers, have been doing social justice work for many years: We should be working together.
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